Sigo dando crdito a Alan Lindquest por ayudarme a recuperar

mi salud vocal despus de haber daado la instruccin a nivel

universitario. Mi recuperacin se debi en gran medida a la
verdadera comprensin de Lindquest del "golpe de glotte" de
Manuel Garca II; Cierre sano de las cuerdas vocales. Muchos
traducen este concepto incorrectamente. No tiene nada que ver
con el shock gltico. Lindquest explica esto en un artculo para el
diario de NATS en 1949. El "cierre apacible" como lo defini
Lindquest, est permitiendo simplemente que las cuerdas vocales
vienen suavemente juntas despus de la inhalacin y despus de
comenzar el sonido sin un empuje de la presin de la respiracin,
pero un estiramiento De los msculos inferiores del cuerpo. Es la
presin del aliento la que causa "shock gltico". El choque gltico
es una situacin en la cual las cuerdas vocales son explotadas
separadamente despus de que se cierren. Esto es
extremadamente perjudicial para las cuerdas vocales y este
concepto nunca debe ser utilizado. El concepto de Garca no tiene
nada que ver con esto y no debe confundirse con una tcnica tan
daina.

Cuando conoc a Alan Lindquest en 1979, mi condicin vocal era la

siguiente: las cuerdas vocales no se aproximaban despus de la
inhalacin. Constantemente overblew las cuerdas vocales porque
no tena ningn concepto de la retencin del cuerpo la presin de
la respiracin. Mi mandbula estaba empujando hacia adelante
como resultado de la presin de demasiada presin del aliento. Mi
lengua estaba tan tensa debido al reflejo resultante de la mordaza
que tom la forma de la inmersin de una cuchara. Mi parte
superior del cuerpo se derrumb para desesperadamente tratar
de alimentar la respiracin (en realidad conducir la respiracin) a
travs de la laringe. El impulso de la presin de la respiracin fue
un intento de hacer algn tipo de sonido resonante audible. En
realidad no pude hacer un sonido resonante porque la faringe
estaba cerrada. La laringe fue llevada a una posicin alta debido a
la increble presin del aliento. Mi laringe temblaba de un lado a
otro con el vibrato y yo haba empezado a desarrollar un amplio
vibrato (bamboleo). Tena slo 28 aos de edad y mi voz estaba en
ruinas, principalmente por la terrible instruccin que me dieron
los maestros que no saban nada del entrenamiento del Viejo

1
 Mundo; La formacin que desarroll tantos cantantes de clase
mundial a principios del siglo XX.

Desde que yo haba crecido en la parte meridional de los Estados Unidos,

haba desarrollado la insalubre costumbre vocal de hablar
hinchada para ser "hablada con calma". En la cultura surea, es
grosero ser ruidoso. Por lo tanto, hablando con dificultad es una
forma poco saludable de tratar de ser suave y hablado suave. El
presidente Bill Clinton sufri mucho de este hablar hlito durante
su campaa y encontr que tena que tener un entrenador de voz
con l para no sufrir vocal ronquera. Mi amiga y colega la Dra.
Barbara Mathis demostr hace aos que la produccin honda es
perjudicial para la voz. Probablemente ha hecho investigaciones
vocales ms importantes que cualquier profesor de voz en los
Estados Unidos. Si yo fuera una joven estudiante universitaria,
corra a su estudio de voz para estudiar. Por lo tanto, parece que
no slo crec alrededor de hbitos de hablar insalubres, sino que
tambin sufr de instruccin irresponsable a nivel
universitario. Esta confusa enseanza me prepar durante aos
de abuso vocal. Tampoco me ayud que fuera un bartono lrico a
quien todos los directores del coro queran hacer un tenor. Esta es
la razn por la que soy absolutamente estricto en mi creencia de
que el canto en la voz equivocada equivocada es perjudicial para
la voz.

Recuerdo que Alan Lindquest comparti una historia divertida conmigo

mientras yo estudiaba con l. Era su manera de hacer un punto
con un gran impacto. En 1929, Lindquest trabajaba con un
profesor italiano en Nueva York. Despus de que las "imgenes
habladas" vinieran a Hollywood, muchas carreras se perdieron
debido a los acentos o al hecho de que al pblico no le gustaba el
sonido de la voz de alguien. En todo caso, la maestra de
Lindquest, Cellini, tena un cliente que era actor de Hollywood. El
actor sufri un sonido extrao en su voz; Una calidad hinchada y
chirriante que hizo que su voz sonara como una voz de comedia
en lugar de la voz de un actor principal. Este estudiante lleg 3
veces al da, 20 minutos por sesin para trabajar en el 'coup de
glotte' de Garca. Al cabo de un mes, el actor tena una voz
resonante y bella que funcionaba para los papeles principales. Su
nombre era John Barrymore.

Fue Lindquest quien me ense el concepto de Garca del "coup de

glotte" sin el uso del shock gltico. Era un cierre suave de las
cuerdas vocales despus de la inhalacin, algo que nunca haba
experimentado. Al principio, era prcticamente imposible para m

2
 producir un tono slido. Mi voz estaba al borde de un dao
permanente y mis cuerdas vocales estaban "inclinadas", as que
no se unieron correctamente. Lindquest era un hombre
extremadamente amable y paciente y us algunas maneras
maravillosas de ayudarme a aprender a aproximar mis cuerdas
vocales sanamente. Me hara respirar como si hubiera olvidado lo
que iba a decir. Entonces l preguntaba: "Sientes algo
suavemente cerca de tu garganta para tapar el aliento?" De
hecho, desarroll la capacidad de sentir una garganta abierta
(cavidad farngea) y el cierre suave de las cuerdas vocales; Dos
sensaciones opuestas trabajando juntas. l entonces me hara
hablar la "e" vocal italiana con las cuerdas juntas. Otra
herramienta que utiliz fue decir el sonido 'huh-oh'. Los cables se
cerraran automticamente en el centro de tal sonido. (Esto es
probablemente slo un sonido til para los estadounidenses.) Fue
a travs del uso de estos dos sonidos que las cuerdas vocales
comenzaron a aprender a cerrar correctamente.

Kirsten Flagstad y la Dra. Gillis Bratt

Fue en 1916 que los padres de Kirsten Flagstad la llevaron a Estocolmo

para encontrar un instructor vocal apropiado. Durante ese
tiempo, ella audicion para el Dr. famoso Gillis Bratt, un doctor
de la garganta, profesor de la voz, y bartono opertico. (He
hablado de su experiencia en un artculo anterior.) En la biografa
de Vogt sobre Flagstad llamada Flagstad, Cantante del Siglo
(p.48), habla de su experiencia cuando hizo una audicin para el
Dr. Bratt. Una de las primeras preguntas que le hizo fue: "Has
estado cantando en pblico?" Cuando respondi que s a esta
pregunta, l dijo: "Me sorprende que su pblico pueda orle,
usted tiene la voz de un nio, muy pequeo y con mucho
aliento". A pesar de que ella insisti en que haba recibido
excelentes crticas, estaba seguro de que slo estaba usando una
pequea parte de su voz. Este fue el caso en mi situacin
vocal. Ahora puedo ver claramente a travs de mi experiencia que
Flagstad probablemente slo estaba usando parte de su voz. El Dr.
Bratt trabajaba con ella dos veces por semana, a menudo la
llevaba a las lgrimas porque era un maestro tan duro. De hecho,
dijo que su voz lleg a duplicar su tamao anterior en poco ms
de tres meses. La Dra. Gillis Bratt haba estudiado con Garca y
Sigmund Freud. Alan Lindquest estudi con Haldis Ingebjart,
tambin estudiante del Dr. Bratt, en 1938, donde aprendi la
aplicacin apropiada de este concepto al vocalismo saludable.

Bartono Cantor Tenor

3
En el otoo de 2000, ense en Blgica en el hogar de mi asistente
europeo, Gilles Denizot. All ense a jvenes profesionales de
toda Europa y los resultados fueron increbles. Un cantante era un
tenor joven que cantaba bartono, lo cual era completamente
incorrecto para l. Sufri ronquera crnica al cantar bartono, a
menudo hasta el punto de tener que descansar la voz durante dos
das despus de una actuacin de bartono. Su maestro era
insistente (ego falso) que era un bartono. Todava me asombra
que algunos profesores se nieguen a escuchar la razn cuando la
ronquera crnica est presente en la vida vocal de una joven
cantante. Las cuerdas vocales de este cantante no se unieron
correctamente, por lo que los forz juntos presionando la laringe
con la raz de la lengua. Esto es extremadamente peligroso y debo
decir que estaba usando este enfoque vocal slo para tratar de
obtener un sonido. El "golpe de glotte" de Garca aplicado tanto a
los sonidos vocales abiertos como cerrados hizo que esta voz
rpidamente quisiera ir ms y ms alto. Esto me demostr que el
"coup de glotte" de Garca no slo ayud a recuperar la salud
vocal (la voz de esta cantante comenz a lograr resonancia real en
poco tiempo), sino que tambin fue una excelente herramienta
para ayudar a encontrar El verdadero rango saludable de la
voz. En esta circunstancia, la voz quera ir ms y ms alto con un
sonido tenor realmente saludable. As que los resultados positivos
a travs de la correcta enseanza del "golpe de glotte" de Garca
son mltiples; Resonancia sana como resultado de las cuerdas que
se unen correctamente, ms abierta la faringe como resultado de
la cantante con menos presin de la respiracin con la que cantar,
la actitud ms relajada en la postura del cantante, porque el canto
se hace fcil.

Sueco profesional Soprano

En otro artculo, habl de un Soprano sueco que tuvo que dejar de cantar
debido a la falta de una aproximacin saludable del cordn
vocal. Quera repetir esta experiencia en este artculo porque creo
que es crucial en este punto. Esta era una hermosa joven soprano
(de 31 aos) que tuvo que detener su carrera porque la voz
empez a cantar plana. Casi cada nota de su boca era plana en el
tono y ella saba que ella tena que parar el cantar y dirigir este
problema crnico. Su garganta estaba completamente cerrada con
la laringe montada en una posicin muy alta. Trabajamos todos
los das durante seis semanas. Despus de la segunda semana,
finalmente alcanzamos el soporte correcto del cuerpo para lograr
una posicin inferior de la laringe. Para mi propia sorpresa,
cuando la laringe estaba baja y la garganta empez a abrirse, la

4
 voz se volvi completamente hinchada como la voz de un nio sin
desarrollar. Se me hizo obvio que este cantante estaba cerrando
las cuerdas vocales apretando la garganta cerrada. La lengua era
extremadamente apretada y no haba una separacin saludable
entre la raz de la lengua y el hueso hioides. Trabajamos durante
una semana ms con el concepto de "coup de glotte" (cierre
saludable de las cuerdas) y el resultado fue una voz de soprano
increblemente hermosa con una riqueza de calidad
tonal. Recuerdo que trabajamos en febrero y en las primeras dos
semanas de marzo. Ese verano, esta cantante cant actuaciones de
dos peras de estreno mundial en un festival de verano y recibi
brillantes y maravillosas crticas. Otro ejemplo de una cantante
que literalmente recuper su voz con el concepto crtico de cierre
sano de la cuerda vocal.

Soprano britnico

Recientemente, un cantante britnico vino a m con problemas vocales

crnicos. Ella haba sido a travs de la escuela de msica y recibi
su grado de msica. Sin embargo, sufra de un vibrato amplio y
espordico. Los registros no se mezclaron adecuadamente y ella
sufri un gran temor de notas altas. Esta cantante iba a dejar de
cantar completamente hasta que fue remitida a mi estudio de
Nueva York a finales de junio. Haba sufrido emocionalmente de
maestros que decan cosas como: "S que hay una voz ah
dentro!" Estos tipos de declaraciones son emocionalmente
perjudiciales y son intiles en el proceso vocal. Slo la haca
sentirse cada vez ms inferior y en el momento de venir a mi
estudio, en realidad tena pocas o ninguna expectativa de
recuperar su voz.

Le introduje lentamente al concepto de cierre del cordn umbilical con la

laringe baja. Era extremadamente extrao para ella y ella
encontr el sentimiento algo extrao al principio. Sin embargo,
cuando le ped que hablara en su rango bajo, no haba breathiness
de tono. A los 15 minutos de hacer estos ejercicios, la voz comenz
a revelarse como una hermosa soprano rica y resonante con gran
belleza de tono. Este cantante realmente no saba qu decir. Se
encontr absolutamente sin habla, pero quera volver al estudio lo
antes posible. Este es otro ejemplo de un cantante con un gran
instrumento cuyos problemas vocales no fueron diagnosticados
correctamente. La solucin era sencilla y fcil de emplear.

Sesin # 2: Al volver a mi estudio la segunda semana, esta soprano haba

desarrollado su voz en un grado mucho mayor. La laringe haba

5
 aprendido a descender con la respiracin y sin empujarla con la
raz de la lengua. Ella fue capaz de producir un tono slido en los
primeros minutos de esta segunda leccin en lugar de unos 45
minutos en la primera leccin. Lo que me sorprendi fue que a
medida que llegbamos a una pureza cada vez mayor del tono y la
calidad de la resonancia, confes que sta era la forma en que su
voz se senta antes de estudiar en la escuela de msica. Este
cantante fue vctima de lo que yo llamo el "aliviar su sndrome de
la voz" por el que el profesor se asusta por una voz grande. La
cantante fue realmente enseada a aligerar su voz levantando su
laringe. Este es un reflejo directo de la cultura britnica y la
popularidad de lo que yo llamo el sonido de "coro chico". Esto es
extremadamente perjudicial para una voz de adultos y los
profesores necesitan ser educados para el hecho de que la laringe
DEBE ser baja para cualquier vocalismo saludable a resultar. Hay
toda clase de voces dentro de cualquier escuela. Es hora de que la
gente se d cuenta de que no puede hacer que una voz suene como
otra persona. Me vuelvo extremadamente sospechoso de la mala
enseanza cuando los cantantes de cualquier estudio dado suenan
igual. Esto significa que estn "creando un sonido falso" usando
rigidez en la garganta o la laringe. Lindquest dijo una vez que la
voz debe tener su propia impresin del pulgar. En otras palabras,
ninguna voz debe sonar exactamente como otra. Nuestras voces
son tan individuales como nuestra huella dactilar y debemos
aprender a darnos cuenta de nuestra individualidad. El 'coup de
glotte' de Garca ayuda a cualquier cantante a encontrar su
sonido individual; Una necesidad absoluta para el canto
saludable.

Supervisin cuidadosa de este concepto

Es fundamental que este concepto de Garca sea cuidadosamente

supervisado. Tomado demasiado lejos, puede ser mal utilizado y
puede llegar a ser peligroso para la salud vocal. Recuerda que
Garca dice NO tomar el concepto demasiado lejos. El cantante
NUNCA debe controlar el flujo de aire en la glotis. Esto es mal
vocalismo y extremadamente peligroso. Recuerde que la
respiracin es controlada SLO por los msculos inferiores del
cuerpo. Hay varias maneras de equilibrar el "golpe de glotte" y
hablar de estos conceptos en este momento.

1. Suspira por la nariz. Mantenga una pequea sensacin de aire que contina
a travs del orificio nasal mientras usa una posicin de paladar blando
alto. Este concepto permitir una cantidad saludable de aire a travs de la
glotis.

6
 2. Mantenga la posicin de la lengua del 'ng' de Lindquest. La lengua se
sentir cerca del techo de la boca. Desalentar el uso de la raz de la lengua
para controlar el flujo de aire.

3. La mandbula debe estar suavemente en una posicin ligeramente hacia

abajo y hacia atrs para mantener la posicin de la lengua 'ng'

4. La laringe debe bajar suavemente a la inhalacin a medida que la lengua

sube y avanza a la posicin 'ng'.

5. Soporte del cuerpo: coloque la lengua entre los labios y cante una escala de
5 tonos en el registro medio. Usted sentir el aire leve a travs de la nariz. Si
comienza el tono como si estuviera soplando su nariz, apoyar con los
msculos inferiores del cuerpo, la lengua estar libre, mandbula atrs y
laringe baja; todo al mismo tiempo.

He ofrecido tres experiencias diferentes con cantantes que haban

sufrido un gran estrs vocal debido a la falta de cierre sano del
cordn vocal. Hay un sinnmero de cantantes que buscan la pieza
que falta de informacin que los guiar de nuevo a la salud
vocal. Es crucial que el correcto y suave cierre de las cuerdas
vocales est presente para cualquier cantante para crear
equilibrio en el canto.

(C) David L. Jones / 2001

I continue to offer credit to Alan Lindquest for helping me to regain my

vocal health after damaging instruction at the university level. My
recovery was greatly due to Lindquest's true understanding of
Manuel Garca II's 'coup de glotte'; healthy closure of the vocal
cords. Many translate this concept incorrectly. It has NOTHING
to do with glottic shock. Lindquest explains this in an article for
the NATS Journal in 1949. The 'gentle closure' as Lindquest
defined it, is simply allowing the vocal cords to come gently
together after inhalation and then beginning the sound without a
push of breath pressure, but a stretch of the lower body muscles.
It is the breath pressure that causes 'glottic shock'. Glottic shock
is a situation whereby the vocal cords are exploded apart after
they close. This is extremely damaging to the vocal cords and this
concept should never be used. Garca's concept has nothing to do
with this and should not be confused with such a damaging
technique.

7
When I met Alan Lindquest in 1979, my vocal condition was as follows:
the vocal cords did NOT approximate after inhalation. I
constantly overblew the vocal cords because I had no concept of
the body holding back the breath pressure. My jaw was thrusting
forward as a result of the push of too much breath pressure. My
tongue was so tense because of the resulting gag reflex that it took
the shape of the dip of a spoon. My upper body collapsed to
desperately try and fuel the breath (actually DRIVE the breath)
through the larynx. The driving of the breath pressure was an
attempt to make some kind of audible resonant sound. In actuality
I could not make a resonant sound because the pharynx was
closed. The larynx was driven into a high position because of the
incredible breath pressure. My larynx shook up and down with
the vibrato and I had begun to develop a wide vibrato (wobble). I
was only 28 years of age and my voice was in ruins, mainly
because of the terrible instruction I had by teachers who knew
nothing of the Old World training; the training that developed so
many world class singers in the early 20th Century.

Since I had grown up in the Southern part of the United States, I had
developed the unhealthy vocal habit of breathy speaking in order
to be 'soft spoken'. In the Southern culture, it is rude to be loud.
So, breathy speaking is an unhealthy way of trying to be soft
spoken and gentle. President Bill Clinton suffered greatly from
this breathy speaking during his campaign and found he had to
have a voice coach with him in order not to suffer vocal
hoarseness. My friend and colleague Dr. Barbara Mathis proved
years ago that breathy production is injurious to the voice. She
has probably done more important vocal research than any voice
teacher in the United States. If I were a young college student, I
would run to her voice studio to study. So, it seems that not only
did I grow up around unhealthy speaking habits, but I also
suffered from irresponsible instruction at the university level. This
confused teaching set me up for years of vocal abuse. It also did
not help that I was a lyric baritone whom every choir director
wanted to make a tenor. This is why I am absolutely strict in my
belief that singing in the wrong vocal fach is damaging to the
voice.

I remember that Alan Lindquest shared an amusing story with me while I

was studying with him. It was his way of making a point with a
great impact. In 1929, Lindquest was working with an Italian
teacher in New York. After 'talking pictures' came to Hollywood,
many careers were lost because of accents or that fact that
audiences did not like the sound of someone's voice. At any rate,

8
 Lindquest's teacher Cellini had one client who was an actor from
Hollywood. The actor suffered from a strange sound in his
speaking voice; a breathy and squeaky quality which made his
voice sound like a comedy voice rather than the voice of a leading
actor. This student came 3 times per day, 20 minutes per session to
work on Garca's 'coup de glotte'. Within one month, the actor
had a resonant and beautiful speaking voice that would work for
leading roles. His name was John Barrymore.

It was Lindquest who taught me the Garca concept of the 'coup de glotte'
without the use of glottic shock. It was a gentle closure of the vocal
cords after inhalation, something that I had never experienced. At
first, it was virtually impossible for me to produce a solid tone. My
voice was on the verge of permanent damage and my vocal cords
were 'bowed', so they did not come together properly. Lindquest
was an extremely kind and patient man and he used some
wonderful ways of helping me to learn to approximate my vocal
cords healthily. He would have me take a breath as though I had
forgotten what I was going to say. Then he would ask, "Did you
feel something gently close in your throat to cap the breath?" I
actually developed the ability to feel an open throat (pharyngeal
cavity) and the gentle closure of the vocal cords; two opposite
sensations working together. He would then have me speak the
Italian 'e' vowel with the cords together. Another tool he used was
to say the sound 'huh-oh'. The cords would close automatically at
the middle of such a sound. (This is probably only a useful sound
to Americans.) It was through the use of these two sounds that the
vocal cords began to learn to close properly.

Kirsten Flagstad and Dr. Gillis Bratt

It was in 1916 that Kirsten Flagstad's parents took her to Stockholm to

find an appropriate vocal instructor. During that time, she
auditioned for the famous Dr. Gillis Bratt, a throat doctor, voice
teacher, and operatic baritone. (I have spoken of her experience in
a previous article.) In Vogt's biography of Flagstad called
Flagstad, Singer of the Century (p. 48), he speaks of her
experience when she auditioned for Dr. Bratt. One of the first
questions he asked her was, "Have you been singing in public?"
When she answered yes to this question, he said, "I am surprised
that your audience could hear you. You have the voice of a child;
very small and breathy." Even though she insisted that she had
received excellent reviews, he was sure that she was only using a
small part of her voice. This was indeed the case in my vocal
situation. I can see clearly now through my experience that

9
 Flagstad probably was only using part of her voice. Dr. Bratt
worked with her twice per week, often driving her to tears
because he was such a hard taskmaster. Indeed she said her voice
grew to twice its previous size in just over three months. Dr. Gillis
Bratt had studied with Garca and Sigmund Freud. Alan
Lindquest studied with Haldis Ingebjart, also a student of Dr.
Bratt, in 1938 where he learned the appropriate application of this
concept to healthy vocalism.

Tenor Singing Baritone

In the Fall of 2000, I taught in Belgium at the home of my European

assistant, Gilles Denizot. There I taught young professionals from
all over Europe and the results were quite amazing. One singer
was a young tenor who was singing baritone, which was
completely the wrong fach for him. He suffered chronic
hoarseness from singing baritone, often to the extent of having to
rest the voice for two days after a baritone performance. His
teacher was insistent (false ego) that he was a baritone. It still
amazes me that some teachers refuse to listen to reason when
chronic hoarseness is present in a young singer's vocal life. This
singer's vocal cords did not come together properly, so he forced
them together by depressing the larynx with the root of the
tongue. This is extremely dangerous and I must say I was using
this vocal approach just to try and get a sound out. Garca's 'coup
de glotte' applied to both the open and closed vowel sounds made
this voice quickly want to go higher and higher. (See article on
vocal fach.) This proved to me that Garca's 'coup de glotte' not
only helped regain vocal health (this singer's voice began to
achieve true resonance in a short time.) but also was an excellent
tool in helping one find the true healthy range of the voice. In this
circumstance, the voice wanted to go higher and higher with a
truly healthy tenor sound. So the positive results through the
correct teaching of Garca's 'coup de glotte' are multiple; healthy
resonance as a result of the cords coming together properly, more
open pharynx as a result of the singer using less breath pressure
with which to sing, more relaxed attitude in the singer's posture
because singing becomes easy.

Professional Swedish Soprano

In another article, I spoke of a Swedish Soprano who had to stop singing

because of a lack of healthy vocal cord approximation. I wanted to
repeat this experience in this article because I believe it is crucial
in making this point. This was a beautiful young soprano (age 31)

10
 who had to stop her career because the voice began to sing flat.
Almost every note out of her mouth was flat in pitch and she knew
she had to stop singing and address this chronic problem. Her
throat was completely closed with the larynx riding in a very high
position. We worked every day for six weeks. After the second
week, we finally achieved the correct body support in order to
achieve a lower larynx position. To my own shock, when the
larynx was down and the throat began to open, the voice became
completely breathy like an undeveloped child's voice. It became
obvious to me that this singer was closing the vocal cords by
squeezing the throat closed. The tongue was extremely tight and
there was no healthy separation between the root of the tongue
and the hyoid bone. We worked for another week on the concept
of the 'coup de glotte' (healthy closure of the cords) and the result
was an incredibly beautiful soprano voice with a richness of tonal
quality. I remember we worked during February and into the first
two weeks of March. That summer, this singer sang performances
of two world premiere operas in a summer festival and received
glowing and wonderful reviews. Yet another example of a singer
who literally regained her voice with the critical concept of
healthy vocal cord closure.

British Soprano

Most recently, I had a British singer come to me with chronic vocal

problems. She had been through music school and received her
music degree. However, she suffered from a wide and sporadic
vibrato. The registers did not blend properly and she suffered a
great fear of high notes. This singer was going to completely stop
singing until she was referred to my New York Studio in late June.
She had suffered emotionally from teachers saying such things as,
"I know there is a voice in there somewhere!" These kinds of
statements are emotionally damaging and are useless in the vocal
process. It only made her feel more and more inferior and at the
point of coming to my studio, she actually had little or no
expectations of regaining her voice.

I slowly introduced her to the concept of cord closure with the low larynx.
It was extremely foreign to her and she found the feeling rather
strange at first. However, when I asked her to speak in her low
range, there was no breathiness of tone. Within 15 minutes of
doing these exercises, the voice began to reveal itself as a beautiful
rich and resonant soprano with great beauty of tone. This singer
really did not know what to say. She found herself absolute
speechless, but wanted to come back to the studio as soon as

11
 possible. This is another example of a singer with a great
instrument whose vocal problems were not diagnosed properly.
The solution was simple and easy to employ.

Session #2: Upon returning to my studio the second week, this soprano
had developed her voice to a much greater extent. The larynx had
learned to descend with the breath and without pushing it down
with the root of the tongue. She was able to produce a solid tone
within the first few minutes of this second lesson as opposed to
about 45 minutes in the first lesson. What was amazing to me was
that as we got to more and more purity of tone and quality of
resonance, she confessed that this was the way her voice felt
before she studied at music school. This singer was the victim of
what I call the 'lighten up your voice syndrome' whereby the
teacher is frightened by a large voice. The singer was actually
taught to lighten up her voice by raising her larynx. This is a
direct reflection of British Culture and the popularity of what I
call the 'boy choir' sound. This is extremely damaging to an adult
voice and teachers need to be educated to the fact that the larynx
MUST be low for any healthy vocalism to result. There are all
kinds of voices within any school. It is time that people realized
that you cannot make a voice sound like someone else. I become
extremely suspicious of bad teaching when singers from any given
studio sound alike. This means they are 'creating a false sound' by
using rigidity in the throat or larynx. Lindquest once said that the
voice should have it's own thumb print. In other words, NO voice
should sound exactly like another. Our voices are as individual as
our finger print and we must be taught to realize our
individuality. Garca's 'coup de glotte' helps any singer find
his/her individual sound; an absolute must for healthy singing.

Careful Supervision of This Concept

It is critical that this concept of Garca's be carefully supervised. Taken

too far, it can be misused and can become dangerous to vocal
health. Remember Garca says NOT to take the concept too far.
The singer should NEVER control the flow of air at the glottis.
This is bad vocalism and extremely dangerous. Remember that
breath is ONLY controlled healthily by the lower body muscles.
(See article on breath and breath management.) There are several
ways of balancing the 'coup de glotte' and I will speak of these
concepts at this time.

12
 1. Sigh through the nose. Keep a small feeling of air continuing through the
nasal port while using a high soft palate position. This concept will allow a
healthy amount of air through the glottis.
2. Keep the tongue position of Lindquest's 'ng'. The tongue will feel close to
the roof of the mouth. It will discourage using the root of the tongue to
control the outflow of air.

3. The jaw should be gently in a slightly down and back position in order to
keep the 'ng' tongue position

4. The larynx should gently lower at inhalation as the tongue comes up and
forward to the 'ng' position.

5. Body support: place the tongue between the lips and sing a 5-tone scale in
the middle register. You will feel the slight air through the nose. If you begin
the tone as though you are blowing your nose, you will support with the
lower body muscles, the tongue will be free, jaw back and larynx low; all at
the same time.

I have offered three different experiences with singers who had

suffered great vocal stress from a lack of healthy vocal cord
closure. There are countless singers out there looking for the
missing piece of information which will guide them back to vocal
health. It is crucial that the correct and gently closure of the vocal
cords be present for any singer to create balance in singing.

(c) David L. Jones/2001

13
Manuel Garcia and the Coup de Glotte
This is the Appendix from the book A Guide to Good Singing and
Speech by Julian Gardiner. It explains the meaning behind this often confused
concept in the most complete manner that I have found. The book is out of print
so I am copying it in its entirety. It should be stated that although the coup de
glotte is associated with Manuel Garcia, this method did not originate with him.
It was the prevailing technical method of the Italian singing schools from circa
1600 until the end of the nineteenth century which was often referred to as il
bel canto, although the term bel canto was never used by Garcia or any of the
masters from the old school. They simply referred to it as Larte del canto.
As I explained in the Preface, this book was initially inspired by the teaching of
Manuel Garcia, whose name will always be associated with a technique of
launching notes called the coup de glotte or glottal shock. The very mention of
this phenomenon is apt, in England, to set up horrified revulsion. Much of this
irrational behavior is due to the unfortunate English translation, which suggests
nothing so much as strangulation in a dark alley. If we cannot use the original
term, for heavens sake let us think up an equivalent that is less convulsively
opprobrious.
But there is more to it than just an unfortunate translation. Religions, systems of
thought and methods of teaching tend to be perverted in all innocence by
enthusiastic disciples. Garcias teaching was no exception. One of his most
eloquent disciples used to demonstrate the coup de glotte with the aid of a gun,
but such eccentricities need not be associated with a man who was clearly one
of the worlds great masters. The brother of Malibran and Pauline Viardot, the
teacher of Jenny Lind, Marchesi, Stockhausen and Santley, may have lived to be
a hundred, but was not such a doddering old idiot as to teach his pupils to
launch notes in a way which people nowadays refer to as the coup de glotte.
Careful reading of his somewhat delphic treatise suggests that what he called
the coup de glotte demands an intermediate movement between the inhalation
and the attack. Quite certainly he never intended anything like the violent and

14
explosive attack which, as doctors and teachers rightly point out, is bound to do
serious damage to vocal cords. This is how he described it in his Trait Complet
de lArt du Chant:
the neat articulation of the glottis that gives a precise and clean start to a
soundBy slightly coughing we become conscious of the existence and position
of the glottis, and also of its shutting and opening action. The stroke of the
glottis is somewhat similar to the cough, though differing essentially in that it
needs only the delicate action of the lips (i.e. the vocal cords) and not the
impulse of air. The lightness of movement is considerably facilitated if it be tried
with the mouth shut. Once understood, it may be used with the mouth open on
any vowel.
With all respect to a great pioneer, Manuel Garcia was peculiarly unfortunate in
his choice of words. The sense in which he uses articulation would not be
recognized by any dictionary, though the reader will be correct in understanding
articulation of the glottis to mean the approximation of the vocal cords. Less
obscure but far more regrettable is his comparison of the coup de glotte to a
cough. The word cough is defined by the Oxford Dictionary as a violent
expulsion of air from the lungs with the characteristic noise. From the medical
standpoint the act of coughing comprises a short inspiration followed
immediately by a closure of the glottis, and a forcible expiratory effort. A high
pressure is thus created within the lungs and lower air passages. The glottis
then opens suddenly, allowing the air to escape in a blast. It would be difficult
to object to either of these descriptions, and we can hardly wonder that as a
result of his rash comparison, Garcias system has been associated not only
with violence, effort and abruptness, but with the implication that air is forced
through an open glottis.
The French word coup is also an unfortunate term, though in this case Garcia
was hardly to blame. When associated with another substantive it does not
mean shock or blow, as most people seem to think; it means a sudden swift
movement and nothing more or less. By reason of its association with particular
words, such as coup dtat and coup doeil, it has acquired dozens of shades of
meaning. Sometimes by reason of the accompanying word there is an
implication of violence, at other times an implication of delicacy. It all depends
on the word that follows coup de, but basically coup means split second
motion.
In his later book Hints on Singing the author tried to undo this dual
misconception by writing a footnote in which he says that:

15
the stroke of the glottis is meant to describe a physical act of which there
should be merely a mental cognizance, not an actual physical sensation. The
articulation which gives the precise and clean start to a sound is not felt in the
throat (i.e. the larynx) of the singer. It is felt in the sound itself, the attack of the
note, beginning clear, clean and true upon the middle of that note without
preliminary movement or action of any sort beyond the natural act of singing.

The footnote was reinforced by an observation of the editor that:

The suggestion of an analogy between the stroke of the glottis and the act of
coughing is intended simply to aid the student in locating the position and
realizing the function of the glottic lips. There is no need even to think of its
application when articulating or attacking a vocal sound.

No doubt the old man felt that some such footnote was needed to dissociate his
teaching from the heavy-handed efforts of his more ruthless evangelists. But it
is a thousand pities that he was persuaded into writing, or allowing someone
else to write, this nonsensical footnote with its talk of mental cognizance. An
unmistakable sensation is and must be present on a good vocal attack. It is
every bit as unavoidable as the twang of a bow-string when you shoot an arrow
into the air, or the click of an electric light as you switch it on. Once it is
established, the sensation is forgotten within a few days. If nothing is felt at the
glottis, it is certain that the throat and larynx are in a condition of normality, in
other words in no condition for effective voice production.

Let us forget about the footnote and consider Garcias original words in the light
of the technique which I have described. He says that the stroke of the glottis is
somewhat similar to the cough, and that the lightness of movement is
considerably facilitated if it be tried with the mouth shut. Normally the act of
coughing is sufficiently violent to make you on social occasions eager to
suppress your cough as much as possible. Nevertheless, with increasing
physical discomfort, a time may come when the abdominal muscles contract so
as to produce a compression against the larynx. You are, however, able to
withstand this pressure long enough not only to provide yourself with a silencer
in the shape of a handkerchief, but also to expel the released air with none of
the explosiveness of less formal occasions.

The normal violent cough is an example of the perverted coup de glotte which
induced Garcia to write his footnote. The polite concert cough, which follow

16
along precisely the same lines as have been described in this book, is surely
what Garcia intended, particularly when he goes on to suggest that you try it
first with the mouth shut, in other words, that you grunt. In this way the act of
singing is initiated with the same smoothness as when one puts a car in motion
by releasing the clutch, though of course at infinitely greater speed. The
operation can be made so quietly that, even over a microphone, it is no more
noticeable that the impact of a violin bow against the string.
An even smoother attack can be achieved if the singer falls in with the
conception of allowing the vocal cords spontaneously to vibrate before coming
in contact with the compressed breath. In this way, and so far as I know, only in
this way is it possible to make the coup de glotte as firm and yet as gentle as a
lovers caress.

My intention of making this information available is to try to bring some clarity

to this misunderstood concept. In the U.S., like in England as the author states,
the coup de glotte is generally regarded as murder to your voice. Unfortunately
what these people are referring to is not what is meant by coup de glotte, and
as a result the proper application of the coup de glotte has been neglected. The
violent attack should be avoided because of its abusive nature to the vocal
folds. But contrary to what most people think, it is not the action of the vocal
folds that makes the coup de glotte abusive, it is the action of the breath. As
the author described, an attack that resembles a typical cough is not
acceptable. What makes it not acceptable is not the closure of the vocal folds, it
is the build-up of air pressure against the closed cords. If we control our
breathing so as to not have a build-up of excess, uncontrolled air pressure, the
cords can close without discomfort or danger of injury. In fact this is the secret
to rehabilitating damaged vocal folds, especially if they have been bowed from
excessive breathiness. As Garcia explained in the first excerpt, the idea of a
cough is used to locate the vocal cords and experience their action. What needs
to be understood is you need to be gentle, and think of coughing with
absolutely no air pressure. Allan Lindquest described it as clicking the cords,
which is the sound they make when you cough with no air. Allan Lindquest also
used the English term perfect attack instead of coup de glotte. That is what
the coup de glotte should be, a perfectly clean closure and spontaneous action
of the vocal cords. It also depends on a released open throat so the vocal cords
dont get crushed. Then after the attack the vocal cords can continue to vibrate
on their thinned edges using the breath without effort. I think the problem

17
comes in when people actually try to perform the coup de glotte. Like the first
attempts of any highly coordinated skill, the individual is not able to be
perfectly in balance and immediately assumes the act is too rough to pursue.
The problem is not with the act, it is just that the individual hasnt developed
the coordination to perform the act perfectly. We need to look at the perfect
attack in the same light as other athletic actions like hitting a baseball or golf
ball, the tennis serve, shooting a basketball. No one who attempts any of these
things for the first time is able to do it even remotely like a well practiced and
skilled person. So dont expect to be able to do the same with the attack. It is a
skill that takes time to master. The key lies in the authors last sentence, the
attack should be firm yet gentle, like a lovers caress.

Manuel Garca y el Golpe de Glotte

Este es el apndice del libro Una gua para el buen canto y el
discurso de Julian Gardiner . Explica el significado detrs de este concepto a
menudo confuso de la manera ms completa que he encontrado. El libro est

18
agotado, as que lo estoy copiando en su totalidad. Cabe sealar que aunque el
golpe de glotte se asocia con Manuel Garca, este mtodo no se origin con
l. Era el mtodo tcnico predominante de las escuelas de canto italianas desde
1600 hasta finales del siglo XIX, que a menudo se denominaba il bel canto,
aunque el trmino bel canto nunca fue utilizado por Garca ni por ninguno de
los maestros De la vieja escuela. Simplemente se refirieron a ella como "L'arte
del canto".
Como ya he explicado en el Prefacio, este libro se inspir inicialmente en la
enseanza de Manuel Garca, cuyo nombre siempre estar asociado con una
tcnica de lanzamiento de notas llamada el golpe de glotte o choque
glotal. La sola mencin de este fenmeno es apta, en Inglaterra, para provocar
horrorizada repugnancia. Gran parte de este comportamiento irracional se debe
a la desafortunada traduccin inglesa, que no sugiere nada ms que
estrangulacin en un callejn oscuro. Si no podemos usar el trmino original,
por el amor de Dios, pensemos en un equivalente que sea menos
convulsivamente oprobioso.
Pero hay ms que una desafortunada traduccin. Las religiones, los sistemas de
pensamiento y los mtodos de enseanza tienden a ser pervertidos en toda
inocencia por discpulos entusiastas. La enseanza de Garca no fue una
excepcin. Uno de sus discpulos ms elocuentes sola demostrar el golpe de
glotte con la ayuda de un arma, pero tales excentricidades no tienen que estar
asociadas con un hombre que era claramente uno de los grandes maestros del
mundo. El hermano de Malibran y Pauline Viardot, el maestro de Jenny Lind,
Marchesi, Stockhausen y Santley, pudo haber vivido hasta cien, pero no era un
idiota tan viejo que enseara a sus alumnos a lanzar notas de una manera que
la gente de hoy en da Se refiere al golpe de glotte . Una cuidadosa lectura de
su tratado, algo delfn, sugiere que lo que l llam el golpe de glotte exige un
movimiento intermedio entre la inhalacin y el ataque. Ciertamente l nunca
pens en nada como el ataque violento y explosivo que, como los mdicos y
maestros sealan con razn, est obligado a causar graves daos a las cuerdas
vocales. As lo describi en su Trait Complet de l'Art du Chant :
... la articulacin ntida de la glote que da un inicio preciso y limpio a un
sonido ... Al toser ligeramente nos hacemos conscientes de la existencia y
posicin de la glotis, as como de su accin de cierre y apertura. El golpe de la
glotis es algo similar a la tos, aunque difiere esencialmente de que slo necesita
la delicada accin de los labios (es decir, las cuerdas vocales ) y no el impulso
del aire. La ligereza del movimiento se facilita considerablemente si se prueba

19
con la boca cerrada. Una vez entendido, puede ser utilizado con la boca abierta
en cualquier vocal.
Con todo respeto a un gran pionero, Manuel Garca fue particularmente
desafortunado en su eleccin de palabras. El sentido en el que utiliza la
articulacin no sera reconocido por ningn diccionario, aunque el lector est
en lo correcto al entender que la articulacin de la glotis significa la
aproximacin de las cuerdas vocales. Menos oscuro, pero mucho ms
lamentable es su comparacin del golpe de glotte con una tos. La palabra "tos"
se define por el Oxford Dictionary como "una expulsin violenta del aire de los
pulmones con el ruido caracterstico". Desde el punto de vista mdico, el acto
de la tos comprende una breve inspiracin seguida inmediatamente por un
cierre de la glote y un esfuerzo espiratorio forzoso. De este modo se crea una
alta presin dentro de los pulmones y pasajes de aire inferiores. La glotis se
abre entonces de repente, permitiendo que el aire escape en una
explosin.Sera difcil objetar cualquiera de estas descripciones, y no podemos
extraarnos de que, como resultado de su temeraria comparacin, el sistema
de Garca se haya asociado no slo con la violencia, el esfuerzo y la
brusquedad, sino con la implicacin de que el aire es forzado a travs de una
Glottis abierto.
La palabra francesa golpe es tambin un trmino lamentable, aunque en este
caso Garca no era culpable. Cuando se asocia con otro sustantivo no significa
choque o golpe, como la mayora de la gente parece pensar; Significa un
repentino movimiento rpido y nada ms o menos. Debido a su asociacin con
palabras particulares, como golpe de estado y golpe de ojo , ha adquirido
decenas de matices de significado. A veces, debido a la palabra que lo
acompaa, hay una implicacin de la violencia, otras veces una implicacin de
la delicadeza. Todo depende de la palabra que sigue a 'coup de', pero
bsicamente golpes significa 'split second motion'.
En su ltimo libro Hints on Singing, el autor trat de deshacer este doble
concepto errneo escribiendo una nota al pie de pgina en la que dice que:
... el golpe de la glotis est destinado a describir un acto fsico del que no
debera haber ms que un conocimiento mental, no una sensacin fsica real. La
articulacin que da el inicio preciso y limpio de un sonido no se siente en la
garganta (es decir, la laringe) del cantante. Se nota en el sonido mismo, el
ataque de la nota, comenzando claro, limpio y verdadero en el medio de esa
nota sin movimiento o accin preliminar de ninguna clase ms all del acto
natural de cantar.

20
La nota de pie de pgina fue reforzada por una observacin del editor que:
La sugerencia de una analoga entre el golpe de la glote y el acto de toser tiene
por objeto simplemente ayudar al estudiante a localizar la posicin y realizar la
funcin de los labios glticos. Ni siquiera hay que pensar en su aplicacin al
articular o atacar un sonido vocal.
Sin duda, el anciano senta que tal nota de pie de pgina era necesaria para
disociar su enseanza de los esfuerzos pesados de sus evangelistas ms
despiadados. Pero es mil piedad que se convenciera de escribir, o de permitir
que alguien ms escribiera, esta nota sin sentido con su charla de conocimiento
mental. Una sensacin inconfundible es y debe estar presente en un buen
ataque vocal. Es tan inevitable como el twang de una cuerda de arco cuando se
dispara una flecha en el aire, o el chasquido de una luz elctrica como usted lo
enciende. Una vez que se establece, la sensacin se olvida en pocos das. Si no
se siente nada en la glote, es cierto que la garganta y la laringe estn en una
condicin de normalidad, es decir, en ninguna condicin para una produccin de
voz efectiva.
Olvidmonos de la nota de pie de pgina y consideremos las palabras originales
de Garca a la luz de la tcnica que he descrito. Dice que el golpe de la glote es
algo parecido a la tos, y que la ligereza del movimiento se facilita
considerablemente si se prueba con la boca cerrada. Normalmente, el acto de
toser es lo suficientemente violento como para hacer que en las ocasiones
sociales ansiosos de suprimir la tos lo ms posible. Sin embargo, con el
aumento de la incomodidad fsica, puede llegar un momento en que los
msculos abdominales se contraen para producir una compresin contra la
laringe. Sin embargo, eres capaz de soportar esta presin durante bastante
tiempo, no slo para proporcionarte un silenciador en forma de pauelo, sino
tambin para expulsar el aire liberado sin la explosividad de ocasiones menos
formales.
La tos violenta normal es un ejemplo del golpe de glotte pervertido que indujo a
Garca a escribir su nota de pie de pgina. La tos de concierto corts, que sigue
exactamente las mismas lneas que han sido descritas en este libro, es
seguramente lo que Garca pretenda, sobre todo cuando sugiere que lo
pruebes primero con la boca cerrada, es decir, que grues . De esta manera, el
acto de cantar se inicia con la misma suavidad que cuando uno pone el coche
en movimiento liberando el embrague, aunque naturalmente a una velocidad
infinitamente mayor. La operacin se puede hacer tan silenciosamente que,

21
incluso sobre un micrfono, no es ms notable que el impacto de un arco de
violn contra la cuerda.
Un ataque an ms suave se puede lograr si el cantante cae en la concepcin
de permitir que las cuerdas vocales espontneamente a vibrar antes de entrar
en contacto con el aire comprimido. De esta manera, y hasta donde yo s, slo
de esta manera es posible hacer el coup de glotte tan firme y tan suave como la
caricia de un amante.
Mi intencin de hacer esta informacin disponible es intentar traer cierta
claridad a este concepto incomprendido. En los Estados Unidos, como en
Inglaterra, como dice el autor, el golpe de glotte se considera generalmente
como un asesinato a su voz.Desafortunadamente lo que estas personas se
refieren no es lo que se entiende por golpe de glotte, y como resultado de la
aplicacin correcta del golpe de glotte se ha descuidado.El ataque violento
debe ser evitado debido a su naturaleza abusiva a los pliegues vocales.Pero
contrariamente a lo que la mayora de la gente piensa, no es la accin de los
pliegues vocales lo que hace el golpe de glotte abusivo, es la accin de la
respiracin. Como el autor describi, un ataque que se asemeja a una tos tpica
no es aceptable. Lo que hace que no sea aceptable no es el cierre de los
pliegues vocales, es la acumulacin de presin de aire contra los cordones
cerrados. Si controlamos nuestra respiracin para no tener una acumulacin de
exceso, presin de aire descontrolada, las cuerdas se pueden cerrar sin
molestias o peligro de lesin. De hecho, este es el secreto para la rehabilitacin
de los pliegues vocales daados, especialmente si se han curvado de la
respiracin excesiva.Como Garca explic en el primer extracto, la idea de una
tos se utiliza para localizar las cuerdas vocales y experimentar su accin. Lo
que necesita ser entendido es que necesita ser gentil, y pensar en toser con
absolutamente ninguna presin de aire. Allan Lindquest lo describi como
"haciendo clic" en las cuerdas, que es el sonido que producen cuando usted
tose sin aire. Allan Lindquest tambin us el trmino ingls 'ataque perfecto' en
lugar de coup de glotte. Eso es lo que debe ser el golpe de glotte, un cierre
perfectamente limpio y la accin espontnea de las cuerdas vocales. Tambin
depende de una garganta abierta para que las cuerdas vocales no se
aplastan. Luego, despus del ataque, las cuerdas vocales pueden seguir
vibrando en sus bordes delgados usando la respiracin sin esfuerzo. Creo que el
problema viene cuando la gente realmente intenta realizar el golpe de glotte. Al
igual que los primeros intentos de cualquier habilidad altamente coordinada, el
individuo no puede estar perfectamente en equilibrio e inmediatamente asume

22
que el acto es demasiado spero para perseguirlo. El problema no es con el
acto, sino que el individuo no ha desarrollado la coordinacin para realizar el
acto perfectamente. Tenemos que mirar el ataque perfecto en la misma luz que
otras acciones atlticas como golpear una pelota de bisbol o de golf, el
servicio de tenis, disparar una pelota de baloncesto. Nadie que intente
cualquiera de estas cosas por primera vez es capaz de hacerlo incluso
remotamente como una persona bien practicada y experta. As que no esperes
ser capaz de hacer lo mismo con el ataque. Es una habilidad que toma tiempo
para dominar. La clave est en la ltima frase del autor, el ataque debe ser
firme pero suave, como la caricia de un amante

23